Understandable. Well, you're pretty well set for dive spots as far Gulf Shores/ Orange Beach area is concerned. You've got 5 great dive sites within a few miles of eachother (Perdido Bay Bridge, Sea Wall perpendicular to jetty, jetty, Whiskey Wreck and the Rock Island, which is literally RIGHT NEXT to the jetty, it used to be one in fact.)
New to diving, curious about easier dives in Gulf Shores/ Perdido Key area
- Thread starter CKeffer
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Hetland
Contributor
Trust me, if you're in somewhat decent vis water, going deeper than 60ft really isn't any more stressful or difficult than going to 15 feet, all things considered. The only thing you need to do is have your safety stop. I dove the Oriskany with 15 dives under my belt the first time. Was I nervous as hell? Yeah! Was it one of the most enjoyable dives I've ever done? Yeah! Was my nervousness completely unreasonable after I realized just how easy that kind of diving is, especially when all my dives were done in 5' vis? Yeah! It had been several years since I was certified and I hadn't dived at all in that time, due to work and school.
In my opinion, once you go down a little ways you'll see just how comfortable you really are. Take the most comfortable you've ever been in a lake, multiply it by 500,000 and that's what it'll be in vis over 40ft in salt water with good light. You'll almost forget you're at 110ft, I know I did.
Ps- I know it isn't good practice to bring new divers out to the Oriskany or other dives like it, I was just showing that a lot of the nervousness involved in diving deep in the ocean is largely unfounded, so long as you realize that you MUST do your safety stop. I won't mention the name of the shop because that was a good while ago and I can only hope that they've changed their business practices
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I also WAS NOT condoning him to dive the Oriskany, I was just saying that diving in 60ft of water doesn't feel any different than in 15ft, given if the conditions are good.
In some very, very narrow ways, I agree with you. The (usually good) viz and easy navigation make the Oriskany dive "safer" than shallower inshore dives with poor visibility.
But you're not taking into account that a diver burns through his gas faster at greater depths, or the difference between narcosis on a 60ft dive vs. a 110ft dive, and a newer diver isn't likely to notice narcosis at all, mainly because he/she lacks experience, and also because of CO2 retention/build-up from heavier breathing, which only adds to the narcotic effects of nitrogen narcosis. A newer diver won't appreciate how fast he is burning through his gas at those deeper depths, or how fast he will run out of NDL time.
Nervousness about diving deep in the ocean is largely founded. No less than three divers lost their lives in our part of the Gulf last Summer, all were diving in excess of 100ft, two were within recreational limits, and all had deep Gulf diving experience. If you believe that your ability to think and perform tasks at 100ft of depth is the same as it is on the surface, or even at 60ft, you are mistaken. There is a long list of top-flight, hard-core, born-with-gills lifetime divers that thought the same thing and died. Depth literally killed them. If you think you're special, and that narcosis doesn't affect you, you are wrong.
I'm not saying this to scare anyone. I enjoy diving the Gulf Coast, and there are hundreds of divers almost every week conducting safe dives within recreational limits, but you have to respect what depth does to your mind and body, even if you don't feel or notice it. That's why the limits exist in training. 60ft is to give you a chance to get used to how you use gas, to increase your comfort in an underwater environment, to give you familiarity with your gear. You have the rest of your life to dive, and there are plenty of awesome spots for you to dive within your current limits. Slow and steady wins the race.
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High tides are good for Ft. Pickens the first few days:
Sa 23 High 11:54 AM
Su 24 High 12:27 PM
M 25 High 12:48 PM
These guys: https://www.facebook.com/groups/176478722474555/ usually have something going on, and I'd bet you could find someone to give you the grand tour if you contacted them ahead of time.
I was talking about my personal experience with nervousness on diving deep in the Gulf. I am well aware of the dangers associated with diving deep with little experience, in the most loosely applied terms possible was I talking about how nervousness was unfounded. Nervousness probably wasn't the right word- fear would probably be a better choice. I was nervous, the OP appears to have some fear about it.
I will stand firm to my following statement, no matter what anyone says: As long as you have the proper training, equipment, experience and are comfortable in the water, diving with someone you trust, and confident (not cocky) in your abilities as a diver, and have a solid plan and accident resolution plan, and dive within your experience and limits there is NOTHING to be AFRAID of. This is not to be mistaken with nervousness or apprehensiveness. While fear is a survival instinct that can keep up alive in some sticky situations, but there is NO PLACE for it in SCUBA diving, fear can get you killed.
Yes. You are right in saying that things like narcosis, NDLs, air consumption and safety stops should be taken into a very heavy account. But as a OW diver, he was trained to dive within these limits, and if he so chooses to dive outside of these limits, he was also taught the proper protocol to counteract any adverse effects of not observing these limits. Such as, ascending to counteract narcosis, safety stops if you exceed your NDLs. Air consumption issues are always the most easily avoidable, providing there is no equipment malfunctions. Follow the dive plan, stick to the rule of thirds, and watch your SPG frequently.
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It's basically a second jetty, but it bottoms out a little bit deeper, as it's in open water, but it's within throwing distance if you're at the end of the shore and sea wall jetty. I think, but am not sure, that the Rock Island was once a jetty (actually I'm fairly positive of that) but was battered by storms and things of that nature, and eventually started to lose it's structure because it didn't have a sturdy base on a shore. Don't quote me on that though. And please do me a favor, go check out that dresser/ bridge rubble thing right next to the sea wall, about middle of the ways length, you'll see it when walking on the sea wall to get to your dive site. It's in only a few feet of water so SCUBA really isn't required. But do me a favor and please confirm what that thing is!
I was talking about my personal experience with nervousness on diving deep in the Gulf. I am well aware of the dangers associated with diving deep with little experience, in the most loosely applied terms possible was I talking about how nervousness was unfounded. Nervousness probably wasn't the right word- fear would probably be a better choice. I was nervous, the OP appears to have some fear about it.
I will stand firm to my following statement, no matter what anyone says: As long as you have the proper training, equipment, experience and are comfortable in the water, diving with someone you trust, and confident (not cocky) in your abilities as a diver, and have a solid plan and accident resolution plan, and dive within your experience and limits there is NOTHING to be AFRAID of. This is not to be mistaken with nervousness or apprehensiveness. While fear is a survival instinct that can keep up alive in some sticky situations, but there is NO PLACE for it in SCUBA diving, fear can get you killed.
Yes. You are right in saying that things like narcosis, NDLs, air consumption and safety stops should be taken into a very heavy account. But as a OW diver, he was trained to dive within these limits, and if he so chooses to dive outside of these limits, he was also taught the proper protocol to counteract any adverse effects of not observing these limits. Such as, ascending to counteract narcosis, safety stops if you exceed your NDLs. Air consumption issues are always the most easily avoidable, providing there is no equipment malfunctions. Follow the dive plan, stick to the rule of thirds, and watch your SPG frequently.
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It's basically a second jetty, but it bottoms out a little bit deeper, as it's in open water, but it's within throwing distance if you're at the end of the shore and sea wall jetty. I think, but am not sure, that the Rock Island was once a jetty (actually I'm fairly positive of that) but was battered by storms and things of that nature, and eventually started to lose it's structure because it didn't have a sturdy base on a shore. Don't quote me on that though. And please do me a favor, go check out that dresser/ bridge rubble thing right next to the sea wall, about middle of the ways length, you'll see it when walking on the sea wall to get to your dive site. It's in only a few feet of water so SCUBA really isn't required. But do me a favor and please confirm what that thing is!
Nah, fear isn't the right word, I was more nervous my first time at an autocross event (racing cars), it's more that I have respect for what can happen to you and want to be sure that I know what I'm doing before I go deeper than they suggest beginners go, since that's exactly what I am. I look at it the same way I did with racing; you don't just hop in the car and go....it's going to get you or someone around you hurt. Better to get comfortable with things and work your way up to the faster (deeper in this case?) stuff so you'll know what to do in a given situation and feel comfortable enough in a given situation to handle the unexpected as calmly and safely as possible rather than over estimate your abilities and get into a situation and have something happen that makes you go "holy hell I'm xxx ft down, and ____ happened, the hell do I do!?! :crazyeye:" And whoever mentioned it is exactly right when they said I wouldn't' be able to recognize narcosis if it set in and I do need to learn to manage my breathing so I don't burn though it so quickly. Basically I'm trying to treat diving like I have any other potentially dangerous activity I've participated in be it motorsports, firearms related activities, or what have you; start slow, learn your limits and get comfortable with what you're doing, then start to slowly expand your limits and skill set.
As for the dresser/ bridge rubble thing, I'll try and check it out!
I completely agree with you. I've always been very comfortable in the water, but the Oriskany was uncharted territory for me, so I made sure that I booked a day where the conditions were PERFECT, and I wanted to book the second dive of whatever day the diving was best, so that anyone who came back to the shop first could tell the conditions. I was very cautious
That's what it's about - staying within your comfort zone. There were two key points in my post. 1) if you wanna boat dive talk to the ops and see if they can tailor a trip to your experience and comfort level, and 2) don't underestimate a shore dive because it is shallow.
Good luck on your trip. I also live in Texas and make 3 or 4 trips to that area every year for the diving.
Look me up....I might have an opening on the 23rd. It would be a spearfishing/videoing/fun- two tank trip......Destination depends on conditions. No more than four divers on the boat......
Well, due to the storm, none of the charters were running. We ended up renting a boat with my folks and going into Pensacola Bay. Visibility was damn near 0', but it was still a good chance to practice navigation skills and such. Hopefully my next salt water dive will have better visibility and be a little more fun.
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